-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Swedish golfer Henrik Stenson carded a solid 69 in the opening round of the WGC-CA Championship but it was his highly unusual recovery shot on the 12th on the Blue Monster course at Doral which raised more than a few eyebrows .

Stenson did not leave much to the imagination with his Doral antics .

Stenson stripped down to the bare essentials -- a pair of white boxer shorts -- before wading into the mud to hack out his ball after an wayward tee shot .

The watching galleries could hardly believe their eyes as the tall Swede peeled off his clothes .

`` Shirt , trousers , socks , shoes , hat , the lot was off , '' he told the Press Association .

`` Because of the mud I could n't really afford to play in any of my clothes as they would have been a real mess down the last six or so holes so I had no option , '' Stenson explained .

After getting the ball back on to the fairway , Stenson eventually made a one-over par bogey on the hole when he could have dropped at least two shots by taking a drop .

`` If you are saving a shot , that has to be worth taking your shirt and trousers , '' he added .

What do you think of Stenson 's cheeky recovery shot ?

The incident proved the main talking point on the day that Tiger Woods made his return to strokeplay golf and 32-year-old Stenson jokingly said it might offer a new avenue for sponsorships .

`` Absolutely , you never know , after this I might have a new endorsement with PlayGirl or something like that . ''

European Ryder Cup star Stenson is playing for the $ 1.4 million first prize in the tournament in Florida which has an elite 81-strong field .

His recovery shot evoked memories of the last-hole drama at the 1999 British Open at Carnoustie when tournament leader Jean Van de Velde waded into the Barry Burn after taking off his shoes and socks .

The Frenchman at least spared the blushes of the crowds by keeping on his clothes but he made a hash of hole and lost his chance of winning the famous major .

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Henrik Stenson creates a stir with ` striptease ' at top tournament in Florida

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Swedish star strips down to the bare essentials to play his ball out of the mud

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Tactic works as he saves at least a shot and cards a three-under 69